The future of Scottish pharmacy
We are very proud to be joined by the newly appointed Chief Pharmaceutical Officer for Scotland and Honorary Professor at the Robert Gordon University Alison Strath. Pharmacy in Scotland continues to thrive but what lies ahead? Alison has for years been one of the most visionary leaders in Scottish pharmacy so it is, therefore, a pleasure to welcome her to describe what her view of the future could look like.
The future global pharmacist
There’s a big world out there beyond UK pharmacy and a few years ago Dr Catherine Duggan stepped out into it. As the CEO of The International Pharmaceutical Federation, she has demonstrated transformational leadership globally. Through this work, she has championed the role of the pharmacist in many countries around the world. We are extremely fortunate to welcome her to the inaugural Future Pharmacist conference to explain how the pharmacist profession has developed globally, especially in light of recent events.
A pharmacist’s experience of breast cancer
Listening to the patient voice has always been very important to us at Pharmacy in Practice. Dr Ruth Edwards was diagnosed with breast cancer a number of years ago and since then she has courageously faced into the disease and more than that has shared her experience with considerable candour for the benefit of others, not least her pharmacist colleagues.
The future of Community Pharmacy
Ade Williams is the Superintendent Pharmacist at Bedminster Pharmacy in  Bristol, also part of the prescribing clinical team at Broadmead Medical Practice, a local GP surgery and the Associate Non-Executive Director of the North  Bristol Trust.
The future role of the pharmacist in tackling the climate crisis
Minna Eii is an Advanced Pharmacist Practitioner in Acute medicine. She is Vice-Chair of Sustainability at The Guild of Healthcare Pharmacists and also a Member of Pharmacy Declares (Twitter: @PharmDeclares) environmentally conscious pharmacy professionals calling for climate health/action, leadership, education, declaration, and divestment.
How to fail
Many pharmacists dislike failure. Research literature around this topic has characterised pharmacists as procrastinating perfectionists. If we assume these traits are well observed and we are aware of them then how do we as pharmacists ensure there is space to fail, learn and grow.
Gary Redfeather
Academic pharmacist
Clinical, medical leadership, education and research programme lead at De Montford University.
Yousaf Ahmad
Chief Pharmacist
Non-executive director, global pharmacy ambassador, advisory and editorial board member, university teacher practitioner.
Is advanced practice for pharmacists the answer to all our problems?
For a number of years, there has been a movement towards advanced practice for pharmacists. Our panellists for this session has been right at the sharp end of developing and championing this movement.
Learning objectives from this session include:
- Gain an understanding of what advanced practice is.
- Take part in debate around why consultant level practice for pharmacists is something we as a profession should aspire to.
- Consider whether the ‘procrastinating perfectionism’ that has been described by authors like Zubin Austin could act as a barrier to these goals.
- Learn about how you might start your own journey towards advanced practice as a pharmacist.
Gordon Rushworth
GP pharmacist and educator
Programme Director, Highland Pharmacy Education & Research Centre, NHS Highland. FRPharmS(Consultant). Advanced Pharmacist Practitioner in GP.
Paul Forsyth
Lead pharmacist clinical cardiology
Paul Forsyth currently works at the Department of Pharmacy, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. He has an interest in the education of pharmacists and in particular competency-based learning as a progression towards advanced practice.
Susan Roberts
Associate Pharmacy Postgraduate Dean
Susan is currently the Associate Pharmacy Postgraduate Dean at NHS Education for Scotland, she is a pharmacist and educator. She recently was asked by the CPhO to lead pharmacy operations at the Louisa Jordan hospital in Glasgow.
Jacqueline Sneddon
Antimicrobial pharmacist
Antimicrobial pharmacist, interested in education and QI. Programmes Manager for BSAC, member of RPS Scottish Pharmacy Board and RPS AMR EAG.
Fiona Marra
Paediatric pharmacist
MPharm (Consultant). Lead Clinician Paediatric Infection (SPAIIN). Principal Pharmacist U of Liv & PHS. PhD candidate.
Will robots be the death of community pharmacy?
James Semple
Community pharmacy contractor
James Semple, Contractor and Vice-chairman of the Community Pharmacy Scotland Board.
Kevin Murphy
Co-founder of Medpoint
Superintendent Pharmacist at Wellbeing Pharmacies Group, Co-founder and Clinical Director at Acorn.
Is the rise of robotics in the sector a threat or an opportunity?
- Learn about the range of robotic options available in pharmacy.
- Hear first hand feedback about the use of the various types of robots.
- Understand the workflow implications.
- Find out about the return on investment on the various robots on the market.
- Understand some of the downsides of robots.
- Learn about the long term impact of the various robots on the future of community pharmacy.
The future of pharmacists in research
Getting involved in research activities can feel daunting. As pharmacists, it could be argued that we don’t prioritise research in our careers enough. This session will involve a conversation between some of the top pharmacists involved in research in the UK. With decades of experience between them, we are hopeful that they might share their insights on why research matters and also some simple, manageable steps you can take to start your own research journey.
Join us for this panel discussion as part of the Future Pharmacist Conference.
Professor Mags Watson
Professor of Health Services Research and Pharmacy Practice University of Strathclyde
Independent consultant. Watson Research & Training Limited – health services research (HSR), HSR training, mentoring & coaching. Registered pharmacist.
Professor Catriona Matheson
Professor in substance use
Professor in substance use at the University of Stirling, a freelance researcher in drug dependence and Chair of Scottish Drug Deaths Taskforce.
Dr Hayley Gorton
Research and community pharmacist
Senior Lecturer in Pharmacy Practice at the University of Huddersfield, interested in suicide research, community pharmacist and lead at RPS Greater Manchester.
The Aural Apothecaries
The Aural Apothecary Podcast has captured the imagination of pharmacists across the land and has provided some light-hearted relief from what has been a tricky few years. The podcast is a lighthearted take on the world of medicines, pharmacy and healthcare in the UK from Jamie, Gimmo and Steve the Chemist. They have welcomed a number of guests on to their podcast and have asked each to describe their favourite song, book and drug. We are extremely proud to welcome them as guests at our inaugural conference. For fun, we will turn the tables and find out their favourite books, drugs and songs.
Join us for this light-hearted chat as part of the Future Pharmacist Conference.
Jamie Hayes
Steve the Chemist
Paul Gimson
Debate: The Future of Community Pharmacy Screening services
The debate based on whether or not screening for atrial fibrillation should be deployed nationally in Scotland has been progressing for some years now. There is precedent for such schemes elsewhere but so far there has been no nod to such a national service in Scotland. Does the evidence stack up in favour of such scheme? Should pharmacists be involved? If such a screening programme went national what precedent might it set for other clinical areas? What political lever would need to be pulled to make these things happen?
Alexia Pellowe
General Practitioner
GP, Clinical Lead at Technology enabled care, NHS Ayrshire and Arran. Associate Adviser in quality improvement and patient safety. CPD advisor at NES Scotland.
Matt Barclay
Pharmacist
Matt’s current primary role is Director of Operations at Community Pharmacy Scotland. He also regularly works as a pharmacist locum across Scotland.
Lyndsay Steel
Lead GP pharmacist
Lyndsay is the lead General Practice Pharmacist NHS Orkney with a specialist interest in simulation-based education and cardiology.
Debate: Are patient group directions holding pharmacists back?
Patient group directions have traditionally been a ‘stop gap’ option, especially in the era before pharmacist independent prescribing. This debate will explore the future of patient group directions by community pharmacists. Many have lauded patient group directions as an excellent tool to extend the scope of practice of community pharmacists. However, many would say that a tick box technical process serves to continue the de-professionalisation of the pharmacist profession. In the coming years all pharmacists will qualify as independent prescribers but will they be able to make the step away from structured tick box pharmaceutical care or will they embrace uncertainty?
Professor Harry McQuillan
Chief executive of Community Pharmacy Scotland
In addition to his role at Community Pharmacy Scotland Harry is also visiting Professor at the University of Strathclyde and a RNID pension fund trustee.
Siddiqur Rahman
GP pharmacist
Siddiqur is a pharmacist who works in general practice, he is an independent prescriber, PCN clinical lead, Co-Director of the Pharmacist Co-operative and a PDA Union representative.
Professor Derek Evans
Travel health pharmacist
Derek Evans is a pharmacist who owns a private travel health consultancy. He has worked in community pharmacy in many specialist roles and senior management positions.
Farzana Haq
GP pharmacist
Practice pharmacist with experience in community pharmacy, hospital pharmacy, primary care and NHS 24.